Sunday, December 08, 2013

Most entertaining sighting at Art Basel last night … by gimleteye

It's over. No more launching against a tidal wave of traffic at Art Basel. Saturday night, Wynwood, provided great entertainment. Every niche was filled.

A Colombian artist living in London rented a house across from Wynwood Kitchen (slammed, service destroyed by crowds) to open and show his own work. Who had time to see everything?

Of course there were parties everywhere. Everywhere. Rivulets of people looking for taxi cabs. Francis Mallmann, the great Argentine grill master, was at the development sprouting at Collins in the 30's by Faena and a Russian billionaire.

There were a few cautionary notes from unexpected sources. Like Women's Wear Daily, quoting art dealer Larry Gagosian: "It could be the social scene swallows the art scene," (Gagosian) said. “It could erode the core of what made this and I’m a little concerned that serious collectors, people who I do business with, and a lot of my colleagues might say, ‘Well, this is just some social rat f--k,’ and I’ve already started to sense a little bit of that." For certain, those serious collectors will neither appreciate nor look forward to being stuck in Miami Beach traffic. One of the points of being very rich is always having a way to escape the teeming masses; a black card or express lane or helicopter. When Women's Wear Daily points to Steven Tyler as the "celebrity" of Art Basel, the bloom is off the rose.

I'm drawn to art inspired by politics. At the same time, could you live with these paintings? I took these photos of favorites from Art Basel, from the Pulse Art Fair at the Ice Palace. We have our own icons in Florida from the natural world. The manatee and the panther are all grist for the development mills. Get it while you can or steal it and fun while it lasts.

Quote hall of fame - worth another look:

Complete this sentence: South Florida really needs a..."Regional plan for controlled growth (before it becomes a concrete jungle similar to Houston), and a completely new set of elected officials that make decisions based on what's good for the future of South Florida instead of what's good for their wallets.